Waga yue ni iwareshi imo wa takayama no mine no asagiri suginikemu kamo

我がゆゑに言はれし妹は高山の
嶺の朝霧過ぎにけむかも

Roma-ji: Waga yue ni iwareshi imo wa takayama no mine no asagiri suginikemu kamo
English Translation: My love, who because
of me was the talk of all,
like on high mountains
the morning mist on the peaks,
has she now passed away too?
Meaning: The girl who was gossiped about because of me: has she passed away like the morning mist on the peaks of high mountains?
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems Ancient and Modern I 2455

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Expressing Feelings through Things"
The girl who was made the subject of gossip because of her bond with the speaker: has she vanished like the morning mist on a high mountain peak? This love poem laments in worry for the beloved. A sense of guilt toward a lover who suffered from rumor, and anxiety over what has become of her, are entrusted to the fleeting morning mist.
Following the series of poems on clouds, this poem speaks through mist. As for "suginikemu," some read it as meaning that the beloved has passed from this world, others that her feelings have drifted away.
The author is unknown; according to the left note, the poem comes from the Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Collection. That collection is thought to contain both Hitomaro's own poems and poems by others that he recorded. Kakinomoto no Hitomaro was a court poet active in the reigns of Empress Jito and Emperor Monmu, and is counted among the Thirty-Six Immortal Poets.

First line, "waga yue ni": "because of me." "Yue" means reason or cause, and the line carries the guilt of knowing she suffered because of their bond.
Second line, "iwareshi imo wa": "the girl who was talked about." "Iware" is passive, referring to being gossiped about, followed by "shi," the attributive form of the past auxiliary "ki."
Third line, "takayama no": "of the high mountains." Together with the fourth line, it paints the scene of a morning mist that easily fades.
Fourth line, "mine no asagiri": the morning mist on the mountain peaks. With the third line, it works as a preface leading to "sugi" in the last line, since morning mist passes away.
Fifth line, "suginikemu kamo": "has she passed away?" "Sugu" means to pass and vanish, and is also used of a person's death. The perfective "nu" and past conjectural "kemu" are followed by the questioning, exclamatory "kamo."
Author: Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Collection
Source: Manyoshu
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